Ethfinex Rebrands to DeversiFi, Moves Away from Bitfinex

Ethfinex, the Ethereum-focused spinoff of major cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex, is rebranding to “DeversiFi” and re-launching as a separate entity from Bitfinex. The exchange’s Nectar token (NEC) will also be re-designed to serve a different purpose. DeversiFi is being presented as an evolution of Ethfinex Trustless, the variant of Ethfinex that allows users to trade without having to deposit their cryptocurrency, keeping custody of their funds at all times.

DeversiFi will feature margin trading through the bZx Fulcrum protocol, a unique feature among decentralized exchanges. Users will also be able to lend their cryptocurrency through the DeversiFi platform with the help of the same protocol. In addition to these features, DeversiFi also aims to attract traders by offering a competitive fee structure.

Will Harbone, the CEO of DeversiFi, told The Block that the company’s move away from Bitfinex was an amicable split. The DeversiFi team consists of eight former Bitfinex and Ethfinex employees, and Bitfinex CTO Paolo Ardoino will serve as a technical advisor for the company. The Block also writes that DeversiFi will move away from Bitfinex’s initial exchange offering (IEO) platform Tokinex.

According to Harbone, DeversiFi is registered in the British Virgin Islands but is looking to secure regulatory approval from European authorities – European users represented the largest part of the Ethfinex userbase.

Meanwhile, the introductory blog post lays out an ambitious vision for DeversiFi:

“Before now, traders of decentralised exchanges have been forced to sacrifice speed and choice in the name of security and control. Our mission has been to change that, creating an exchange that is fast, liquid, feature-rich and easy to use - all whilst preserving the ownership and security that sits at the heart of decentralised exchange.”

So far, we are still waiting for a DEX to make a substantial dent in the cryptocurrency exchange landscape, as it is still dominated by centralized platforms. However, with development on Ethereum and other similar platforms still going strong, it’s possible that we will see DEXes offer performance comparable to centralized exchanges in the future.